Ohio pawn shop buys Purple Heart, seeks out owner

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- A central Ohio pawn shop buyer says he bought a military combat medal from a seller in hopes of returning the Purple Heart to the family of the original recipient.

The Purple Heart is awarded to U.S. military members who are hurt in action or die of injuries from combat.

WCMH-TV (http://bit.ly/xZ9D8S ) says a seller who reported finding a Purple Heart on a street sold the item to Uncle Sam's Pawn Shop in Columbus this week for $30. The medal is inscribed for Leroy Bryant, the name of a serviceman from Franklin who was killed overseas.

Buyer Gary Chasin says the medal doesn't belong in his pawn shop. He said he's researched the background of the award and would like to return it to Bryant's family.